If it didn’t have special badges and additional lights, this car would look like an ordinary Volkswagen Golf GTI.
However, this eighth-generation VW Golf model also has major changes under the body to make it more bulletproof. As armored vehicles are usually large limousines or vans, at first we wondered who would need something like this, but the country where the conversion was made immediately made this car quite logical.
Namely, this GTI was made in the Republic of South Africa, which is one of the worst countries in the world in terms of the level of violent crime.
The car was developed by SVI Engineering, and it is a quick response vehicle intended for security and similar services. The car received armor made of 3.5 mm thick steel and thick but light bullet-proof glass . Because of this, only the window on the driver’s side can be opened halfway, while the others are fixed in place.
Although in this case it’s a modified GTI, the company says that their package is also compatible with the all-wheel drive Golf R.
High-quality armored steel was used for the doors, load-bearing pillars, roof and custom rear bulkhead. The latter was installed so that there was no need to use the tailgate armor, which reduced the car’s mass and processing costs.
The car has additional protection for important engine components, as the armor is also built into the front bumpers, and the battery is in a bullet-proof box.
